Japan Major 5 Steels’ Raw Steel Output Rises by 39% in January

Crude steel production by Japanese 5 integrated steel makers increased by 38.8% to 7.057 million tonnes in January from a year earlier. The main factor is that the makers reduced their output largely in January 2009. The production recovered 92% level of the recent peak for April-September 2008. Especially, Nippon Steel’s output represented 56.2% plus.

Nippon Steel’s crude steel output was 2.873 million tonnes in January. The volume also increased by 1.3% compared with December 2009. The iron works continue stable operations.

JFE Steel’s production increased by 29.6% to 2.078 million tonnes in January from a year earlier. The output was lower by 10.5% than in December 2009 due to the trouble in a blast furnace at Chiba area of East Japan iron works emerging at the end of December.

Sumitomo Metal Industries’s output increased by 25.3% to 1.164 million tonnes in January from a year earlier. Kobe Steel’s production increased by 38.2% to 626,000 tonnes and Nisshin Steel’s output increased by 21.5% to 317,000 tonnes.

The 5 makers’ pig iron output increased by 23.4% to 6.789 million tonnes in January from a year earlier. Nippon Steel increased the output by 38.6% to 2.803 million tonnes. JFE Steel increased the output by 15.9% to 1.928 million tonnes.

Refer to an attached table.